Party guidelines cause confusion

Students looking forward to downtown parties hosted by some of their favorite on-campus performing groups may notice some changes this year -- changes they should have noticed six years ago.

A lack of communication between student groups, the Student Activities Council and the Office of Alcohol Policy Initiatives has created a series of misunderstandings about current student-group party registration rules.

Since 1999, all student organizations -- including non-Greek groups -- holding parties, shows or other events at public venues such as clubs and bars have been required to register those parties with the OAPI -- though many were unaware of that requirement.

Data obtained from the OAPI indicates that more and more student groups are registering their events every year.

The number of non-Greek student-organization registered parties has more than doubled in the past few years, increasing from 27 in the 2000-2001 school year to 57 last year.

Stephanie Ives, the director Alcohol Policy Initiatives, attributes the rise to an increase of student awareness about registration requirements.

"I think it's probably awareness about the policies," Ives said. "I think in some ways we have overcome the idea that registering parties is a cumbersome process."

Ives, who routinely looks for party flyers around campus to make sure they are registered, said she believes students are beginning to prefer registering their parties to trying to have them without getting caught.

"I hope it allows students to breathe a sigh of relief that they don't have to hide anything," Ives said.

Some student groups, however, were completely unaware of the policies.

"I didn't know," said College senior Nick Bobys, the interim president of a cappella group Chord On Blues, when asked about the policy. "We haven't had events [downtown] for three or four years, so it's never really come up."

Bobys recognized the problem but was unsure of who to blame for the communication failure.

"I don't know if it's anybody's fault," Bobys said. "I think it's a lack of communication on both sides."

College senior Dan DeSouza, the chairman of dance troupe Strictly Funk, said that he too was unaware of the six-year-old registration requirement but blamed SAC for the failure.

"I don't think it's [Strictly Funk]'s fault," DeSouza said. "I've been to a few SAC meetings, and we've never had this mentioned to us."

DeSouza said that the group has only registered its annual downtown spring shows for the past two years, despite the fact that the policy was enacted six years ago.

"I'm not positive if they were registered," DeSouza said. "I'm assuming that we didn't register them because no one ever said anything about registering them."

Despite confusion in the past, the problem is easily solved, DeSouza said.

"I don't see any problems in the future knowing that there is an emphasis on it this year and knowing that it is required," he said.

College senior Phil Gommels, the chairman of SAC, said that there was also a rumor that all student-group parties -- even ones in private off-campus apartments -- would need to be registered.

"That's a common misconception," Gommels said. "The official Mask and Wig after-parties downtown are the kinds of things you have to register. ... If [a student group] is holding a party at someone's house off-campus, its not a problem."

Ives said that she understands the issue and that the lack of communication is not a new issue.

"There are always going to be organizations that don't know the policies or feel they won't get caught" if they do not register, Ives said.

She blamed the individual members of the student groups in attendance at SAC meetings for the communication failure.

"The person [representing a group] at the SAC meeting might have said nothing about [the registration requirements], so there is no group memory," Ives said.

Other changes adopted by SAC last week include expanded alcohol-intervention training as well as the requirement of a competency plan for public-venue parties. Such a plan outlines action to be taken in the case of an emergency at a public-venue party.

Jared Katseff, treasurer of the Penn Democrats, praised the expansion of the alcohol training.

"It's not a big burden," Katseff said. "I like the idea that the University is recognizing that people engage in high-risk drinking."

The changes are "a way for the University to spread pretty critical knowledge," Katseff added.

DeSouza agrees.

"I definitely think it's a positive step," he said. "Everyone should probably go to the alcohol training, and registering a party shouldn't be a big deal."

Please note All comments are eligible for publication in The Daily Pennsylvanian.